The Historical Epistemology as a Philosophical Reflection of the History of Science: the Normative and Descriptive Approaches

Abstract

The following article deals with three problems of the historical epistemology in the context of distinction of the normative and descriptive approaches. The fist problem concerns the configuration of descriptive and normative vectors within the single conception. Their possible combinative variants are studied. The second problem is the relationship between descriptive approach and relativism. The third one is the problem of revealing the specifics of research positions in the historic-scientific analysis, the essence of descriptive and normative approaches in each of them, definition of textual sources of their formation. Keywords—philosophical reflection; history of science; descriptive and normative approaches; relativism; realism; research positions; meta-epistemology